Hidden patterns even in the most mundane of objectsAugust 29, 2014 6:48 PMSubscribe

Via this mildlyimpressive reddit post: I made a ball out of binder clips (130 binder clips, "decently heavy") whose poster sadly has not yet followed up with instructions. Instructables has a less-impressive 60-binder-clip ball, which may still prove to be a challenging build: "My fingers have now just recovered to the point where I can post a comment", "O.M.G.!!!!! I am SO FRUSTRATED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!".

Has anybody found instructions for making "Stressful"? I would love to make one for my desk at work!

And are there any videos showing how the Borromean paper clips fit together? I guess you could open up one clip and then bend it back after assembly, but it doesn't sound like that would work for multiple clips like in those boxes. These would make excellent desk toys or gifts for nerds ...

Leaving this here since it's relevant: A redditor posted this binder clip ball a couple weeks ago and I want to try it myself. I think the pattern of clips and arm is more appealing than those on Abel's binder clip balls.posted by ardgedee at 10:50 AM on August 30, 2014

Well, Hubby was able to figure it out after looking at the photos at the bottom of this page, which is actually instructions for something different but somebody posted a few pics of a "Stressful" assembly. It took strong hands and pliers, though, so maybe this wasn't the best way to build it. It also took a brain that thinks fluently in 3 dimensions - flatlanders like me would be hopelessly lost.

I think we've figured out what to give our geeky man-who-has-everything dads for Christmas this year! (Can't wait to bring my cool new desk toy to work next week and see how people react.)posted by Quietgal at 1:44 PM on August 30, 2014 [1 favorite]

If they were any less good, I would say that he had too much time on his hands.posted by BWA at 4:13 PM on August 30, 2014

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